Do the government’s Family Health Teams provide similar services as Medicor Cancer Centres, but for free?

Medicor Cancer Centres is the only clinic of its kind in Canada that caters specifically to cancer patients. This means we specialize in the skills and expertise needed to address the complex issues of cancer patients (see our services for details).

Before making any decisions, we encourage you to explore all available options. The following list is intended to help you make an informed decision about the Family Health Teams (FHT) or other services offered by the government.

• Eligibility: FHTs have strict patient eligibility criteria. Make sure that you qualify.
• Team structure: Different FHTs will have a different mix of health care providers based on the needs of the majority of their patients. Confirm that your FHT’s structure is suited to a cancer patient's specific needs.
• Primary focus: The primary focus of FHT is not cancer care. Cancer is just one of the many chronic diseases covered by FHTs including diabetes, congestive heart failure, stroke, asthma, osteoporosis and arthitis.
• Doctor-to-patient ratio: Find out about the doctor-to-patient ratio. Your doctor should be able to provide personalized care, answer your questions, discuss options, etc. with out being constrained by time or availability.
• Wait times: Enquire about wait times for both regular and urgent appointments.
• Handling of emergencies: Ensure that evening and weekend emergencies are handled by someone qualified to diagnose and treat problems without any unnecessary delays.
• Navigation of health system: Confirm that both insured and uninsured services will be explored for you so you can make the best possible decision about your care.
• Holistic care: Ensure that your care encompasses all conventional and complementary therapies. Your health care provider should be able to guide you to the right evidence-based complementary therapies for your specific condition.
• Health information sharing: Your multiple health care providers should be able to access your relevant health history wherever needed like emergency room, ambulance, hospital, other clinics, etc.
• Patient satisfaction/complaint resolution: Make sure that you have the flexibility of guiding how your care should be handled. If you are not satisfied with any aspect of your care, enquire about how and by whom your complaint will be resloved, and how long will it take.